Type-writing machine.



No. 632,682. Patented Sept. 5, I899.

R. J. FISHER.

TYPE WRITING MACHINE.

(Apylication filed Mar. so, 1398. (No Ilodal.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

No. 632,682. Patented Sept. 5, I899.

' R. J. FISHER.

TYPE WRITING MACHINE.

(Application filed Mar. 30, 1898.)

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. 7 f 4 v 91 @BIRXH l 5 95 as I 1 r i 7 *"6Wih zsscs 198213101- r fl aay m: mums PElERs c0. mo'rauma, wasnmc'ron.n. c

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEicE.

ROBERT JOSEPH FISHER, OF ATHENS, TENNESSEE, ASSIGNOR TO THE FISHERTYPEW'RITER COMPANY, OF TENNESSEE.

TYPE-WRITING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 63 ,682, dated S p er 1Application filed March 30,1898. Serial No. 675,738. (No model.)

To a/ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, ROBERT JOSEPH FISHER, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Athens, in the county of McMinn and State ofTennessee, have invented a new and useful Type-Writing Machine, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to type-writing ma chines of that class designedfor bookwork, and particularly to a platen for use in connection With'amachine-support to maintain in a proper position a leaf or leaves toreceive the impression of the printing characters; and the object inview is to provide a double platen adapted for supporting both of theexposed leaves of a book, to adapt the machine to be shifted from one tothe other without varying the adjustment of the book or leaf supportingdevices, and, furthermore, to provide a platen which is mounted upon thesupport for longitudinal or axial movement and is adapted to be arrangedin operative position or to be moved out of the way to allow theadjustment of the book-leaves or to be moved from one side of a book tothe other.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in thefollowing description and the novel features thereof will beparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a platen constructedin accordance with my invention applied in the operative position to abase adapted for supporting a book type-writing machine. Fig. 2 is asimilar view showing the manner of arranging the platen leaves ormembers in operative relation with the book -leaves. Fig. 3 is a similarview showing a platen consisting of a single leaf or member. Fig. 4 isan inverted plan view of the base to show suitable means for adjustingthe platen-supports. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section of the base. Figs.6 and 7 are detail sectional views on the planes indicated by the lines6 6 and 7 7 of Fig. 4. Fig. 8 is a detail view of the platen to show themeans for pivotally mounting the same.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawings.

The base 89, which may be constructed in the form of a horizontal tabletop and may, as illustrated, be provided with suitable supporting -legs,is longitudinally slotted, as shown at 90, for the reception of strips91, forming platen supports, the interval. between the strips being suchas to receive a book 92, resting upon the base, and the strips beingdesigned to bear the weight of tracks 1 of atype-writing machine, suchas that illustrated in either of' my former patents, No. 569,491, datedOctober 13, 1896; Nos. 569,625, 569,626, and 569,627, dated October 20,1896; No. 572,535, dated December 8, 1896, and No. 573,868, datedDecember 29, 1896.

The means illustrated in the drawings for varying the verticaladjustment of the supporting-strips include segment-gears 93, connectedin pairs by spindles 94, which are arranged longitudinally of the base,racks 96, depending from the strips contiguous to their extremities andengaged by said segmentgears, and worms 97, meshing with wormgears 98 onsaid spindles and carried by a worm-shaft 99, which is mountedtransversely of the base and extends beyond the front edge thereofwithin reach of the operator to receive an operating-crank 100, all asclearly shown, described, and claimed in a pending application of RobertJ. Fisher and C. L. Laganke, Serial No. 675,729, filed of even dateherewith.

Arranged upon the supports 91 or any equivalents thereof forming a partof a suitable machine-support is a platen 101, which in the constructionillustrated spans the interval between the strips and rests at its frontand rear-edges, respectively, thereon,whereby a leaf which is to receivethe impression is brought to and arranged upon-the upper surface of theplaten and is there held by the superposed tracks 1. In the constructionillustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 the platen is double or of a double-leafform, whereby it is of sufficient area to cover both sides of a book,and thus support both of the exposed leaves when the book is opened.Upon a transverse line (or a line transverse to the line of writing)between the parts or different platen leaves or members is formed a slot102, up-

wardly through which may be extended a plurality of book-leaves toarrange them, respectively, upon the said platen leaves or members. Bythis arrangement it is possible to write on either of the exposed pagesof a book without changing the adjustment of the supporting devices orthe position of the. book, both of the exposed pages being arranged in acommon plane upon the upper surface of a continuous platen, which iscoextensive with the combined surfaces of the exposed leaves and issupported, as above indicated, by the base or the vertically-ad justable supports 91, which may be used in connection with the base. Inthe construction illustrated this platen is pivotally or hingedlymounted, preferably at its rear edge, upon one of the supporting-strips,as by means of hinge eyes or clips 103, fitted upon a hinge rod or pinIOi, secured to said strip, whereby the platen is permanently attachedto the base and is adapted to swing upward to expose a book when it isdesiredto turn a leaf thereof. A ter opening the book two or more leavesmay be raised, as indicated in Fig. 2, and inserted edgewise through thetransverse slot of the platen between the leaves or members thereof, andthereby extended to the upper surface of the platen for subsequentoutward folding to lie in a horizontal position, as indicated in Fig. 1.

In the construction illustrated in Fig. 3 the platen 101"" iscoextensive with only one leaf of a book, but is pivotally mounted atone edge upon the contiguous support or other suitable portion of thebase by means of hinge-eyes 103 fitted upon a hinge rod or pin 104:.This modified construction of platen thus corresponds approximately withone leaf or member of the double platen illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

In both of the illustrated forms of my leafsupporting device, however,the platen is not only mounted for swinging movement upon the base, butis capable of axial movement parallel with the lines of writing, and inorder that this movement may be accomplished the hinge rod or pin isextended beyond the hinge-eyes to allow an adjustment of greater or lessextent in order that the particular position of the book upon the basemay be accommodated by,the platen without necessitating accuracy in theplacement of the book. In other words, if the book should be so arrangedupon the base that the binding-crease is not accurately alined with theslot in the platen (illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2) or the edge of theleaf (illustrated in Fig. 3) the necessary longitudinal adjustment ofthe platen may be accomplished to produce such alinement, and therebyavoid diificultyin disposing the parts in their proper relativepositions and also avoid the risk of tearing or otherwise injuring theleaves of the book in the course of such adjustment. Furthermore, fromthe above description it will be seen that, particularly with relationto the double platen, any tendency upon the part of a leaf at thethicker side of the book to bulge and thus interfere with the propermanipulation of the machine will be prevented by the weight of theplaten, and obviously of the superposed machine, whereby the parts willbe properly held in operative positions. v

lhat portion of the construction described and shown in this applicationwhich relates to the adjustable machine-supporting strips and the platenhinged to one of the strips for vertical swinging movement to expose asubjacent book forms no part of my present sole invention, but isclaimed in a copending joint application of R. J. Fisher and C. F.Laganke, Serial No. 675,729, filed of even date herewith.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit orsacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having described my invent-ion, what I claim is 1. A platen for booktype-writing machines, having leaves or members connectedforsimultaneous movement and arranged in a common plane to respectivelysupport book-leaves, and having an intermediate space or passage throughwhich book-leaves may extend to the upper surface of the platen leavesor members, substantially as specified.

2. A platen for type-writing machines, having pivotal leaves or membersconnected for simultaneous swinging movement, and arranged in a commonplane to respectively support book-leaves, and having an intermediatespace through which book-leaves may extend to the upper surface of theplaten leaves or members, substantially as specified.

3. A platen for book type-writin g machines, consisting of a continuousplate provided at an intermediate point with a transverse slot for thereception of a plurality of book-leaves for extension in oppositedirections, and providing writing-supports on both sides of said slot,substantially as specified.

4. Aplatenforbooktype-Writingmachines, having leaves or members arrangedin a common plane and mounted coaxially, the same being separated by anintervening slot through which book-leaves may extend to the uppersurface of the platen leaves or members, substantially as specified.

5. A type-Writing-machine support having a base, and abook-leaf-supporting platen mounted upon the base for pivotal and axialmovement, substantially as specified.

6. A type-writing-machine support having a base, and abook-leaf-supporting platen hingedly mounted upon the base for swingingmovement in a vertical plane, and linear movement parallel with thelines of writing, substantially as specified.

7. A type-writing-machine support having a book-supporting base, amachine-supporting element arranged above the plane of said base, and abook-lcaf-supporting platen mounted upon said machine-supporting elementfor pivotal and axial movement, substantially as specified.

8. A type-writing-machine support having a book-supporting base, amachine-supporting strip arranged above the plane of the base, and abook-leafisupporting platen hinged at one edge upon said strip forpivotal and axial movement, and extending from said strip to span thatportion of the base which is adapted to be occupied by a book,substantially as specified.

9. A type-writing-machine support having a base, a hinge-rod parallelwith the lines of writing, and a book-leaf-supporting platen havinghinge-eyes mounted upon said hingerod for sliding movement,substantially as specified.

10. A type-writing-machine support having a base, a hinge-rod parallelwith the lines of writing, and a book-leaf-supporting platen havinghinge-eyes mounted upon the hingerod, the hinge-rod being of a lengthgreater than the interval between the terminal or remote hinge-eyes, toallow longitudinal movement of the platen, substantially as specified.

11. A type-writing-machine support having a base, and a plural-leafplaten mounted upon the base for swinging movement and linear movementparallel with the lines of writing, substantially as specified.

12. A type-writing-machine support having a .base, and a plural leafplaten hingedly mounted upon the base and having its leaves connectedfor simultaneous linear movement parallel with the lines of writing,substantially as specified.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ROBERT JOSEPH FISHER.

\Vitnesses:

RALPH D. SrAcKPoLE, EDWARD O. ZWICKER.

